President Uhuru Kenyatta on Wednesday told the youth they stand to benefit from the many employment, job creation and economic empowerment opportunities presented by the Big 4 Agenda projects.

He told Kenyan youth that the transformative development blueprint presents a strong enabling platform to enable them to secure a bright future and maximize their potential.

“The Big Four Agenda provides young persons with multiple avenues for self-fulfillment, economic empowerment, dignified living and service to Kenya,” said the President when he addressed hundreds of youth at State House, Nairobi, during celebrations to honour the 2019 awardees of the President’s Award Kenya

A total of 1601 students drawn from various institutions across the country received their Gold Awards under the President’s Award Kenya Programme whose role is to nurture key values of teamwork, resilience, hard work, determination, leadership, perseverance, community service, discipline, self-reliance and pragmatic thoughts for tangible solutions.

The winners were drawn from national institutions which included academies, secondary schools and universities (both private and public), Borstal institutions, technical institutes and the National Youth Service.

The President said the Big-4 agenda programmes are structured to support the development of education, infrastructure, Information Communication Technology, the arts, culture and sports among other sectors, all aimed at benefiting the youth.

“It is the most exciting and rewarding time to be a young person in our nation’s history,” the President told the over 2000 youths.

He added: “You are fortunate to be living in an exciting time, full of opportunities that previous generations could not even have dreamed of.”

The President challenged young people to avoid falling for the lures of modern life by wasting their youth and vigour in pursuits and actions that add no value to their lives.

“Use your time, energy and effort well; take advantage of the facilitative measures that the government has put in place, be dedicated and diligent, and you will prosper beyond your wildest dreams,” he said

President Kenya enumerated other opportunities that the government has recently tapped into and which are highly beneficial for the youth.

“The digital era and my government’s commitment to fostering the innovations and creativity of young Kenyans is bound to open up new frontiers for you and your peers,” he told the youth.

The President said the decisive action to reinvigorate the education system through a new curriculum, government focus on digital learning and the development of ICT infrastructure and equipment, the ongoing connection of all public schools to the electricity grid and the seamless 100 percent transition for all learners to secondary school marks a new era for Kenya’s youth.

“These interventions are intended to ensure that our young persons are provided with the positive and enabling environment to excel inside and outside the classroom, to acquire the skills and know-how to navigate the modern world, to be self-reliant and innovative and to have a holistic learning experience,” he said.

The President urged the awardees to be the country’s brand ambassadors for courtesy, civic responsibility, community service and action, integrity, hard work and excellence.

Other speakers at the ceremony included sports CS Ambassador Amina Mohammed and the President’s Award Kenya Executive Director Nellie Munala.